Come fly with me...

What a morning!
Today I finally cashed in my Christmas present from Dad - a flying lesson.
I hadn't really thought about it much since Christmas - obviously I was excited, but I just knew it was happening today at 11am and that was that.
But the moment I got to the airport my stomach was in knots.

Although exempt from single-handed take-offs and landings, I actually flew the plane unaided (but with a pilot sitting beside me) for 20 minutes.
Amazingly, much of the flying is done with foot pedals, and I couldn't get over how cool the steering column was... I felt like I was flying the Millenium Falcon rather than a two-seater Sesna.



I did mentally freak out quite a bit when I was asked to climb to 2000 feet, looking left and right to keep out of the way of passengers jets, and to head for 'that tall building in front of you...' but it really was fantastic. I don't think I've concentrated or sweated as much in ages...

My last experience in a light aircraft was seven years ago, when David, Rich and I went up in a four-seater scenic flight over Ayres Rock and Kings Canyon. I vomitted all the way through that journey, and although I did feel bilious towards the end of my flight today, concentrating on finding the airport again and descending the plane to 500 feet kept the sickness at bay!

Thanks Dad - what a great way to spend a sunny Saturday in Sydney.